Container cabinet



Feb. 17, 1959 D. DANDREA 2,874,016

7 CONTAINER CABINET Filed May 11, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR. DANDANDREA m em A TTORNEVS Feb. 17, 1959 D. D'ANDREA 2,874,016

CONTAINER CABINET Filed May 11, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 A0 F/G. 6.

I r I 55 i M f? 4/\/ 52 46 I 49 IIYVENTOR.

W M DA/V DANDREA f lm? BY ATTORNEYS MVJM- United States Patent 2,874,016CGNTAINER CABINET Dan DAndrea, Pasadena, Calif.

. Application May 11', 1956, Serial No. 584,331

Claims. (Cl. 312-323 which these may be stored for easy access. I havedeveloped such cabinets. In one form these are portable, for use atoutdoor barbecues and the like. In another form they may be mountedbetween studs in a wall or fastened to the outside of the wall, asconvenience may dictate.

In general, my invention contemplates the combination in a containercabinet which comprises a box having an open front, a trough extendingalong the bottom of the box, the interior of the trough being of roundconcave cross section. Preferably the curvature of the trough iscircular and uniform throughout its length. A plurality of containersfit side by side in the box. Each container has amxed to its bottom around convex roller member that fits in the trough and supports thecontainer therein and permits the container to be tipped forward out ofthe open front of the box while the roller rotates through a restrictedangle in the trough. Stopping means is provided for retaining therollers in the trough when the containers are tipped forward through therestricted angle. The stopping means preferably comprises an extensionat therear of the trough which rises above the front edge of the troughand overhangs the rear of the trough slightly. Such means permits thecontainer with its attache d roller to be withdrawn from the box bypulling it upward, so that the-roller comes out of the trough when thecontainer is tilted forward.

In another form of my invention the stopping means comprises a stud onthe bottom of each roller. An arcuate slot is provided in the trough foreach container. The stud passes into this slot and rides back and forthin it; as the container is tipped. When the container is tipped forwardthe shank moves upward in the slot until it abuts its upper ,end, whenit and the container are stopped, further forward tipping of thecontainer being thus prevented. If desired, the stud may have a headthat is wider than the slot except at one point along the length of theslot- In such case, the stud may be inserted and removed from the slotwhen it is disposed at the wide point, but not otherwise.

In the form of cabinet adapted for mounting ina wall between studs, thelength of the box on the outside corresponds to the distance betweenstuds, say 14 inches. A box of this length will accommodate ninecontainers, each adapted to hold a standard spice package or can. Thisform of cabinet may also be fastened to the outside of the wall by meansof nails or screws driven through the rear of the box.

lathe-cabinet adapted for mounting ina wall, it is convenient-to provideaflange around the open front of the 2,874,016 Patented Feb. 177, 1959box. This flange may be removable and held in place by catches or snaps.Then, flanges of different colors (to match kitchen decor) may besnapped into place around the boxes. In those cases in which this formof cabinet is merely fastened to the outside of the wall it isconvenient to provide a removable shield around the outside of the boxto the rear. of the flange. This shield conveniently fits against theoutside of the flange and tapers to the rear, where it fits the back. ofthe box. The shield, like the flange, can be made in a variety of.colors.

Similarly, the handles and the label holders may be demountable, so thatcolors can be matched.

The portable model of my cabinet is not provided with a flange aroundits open front, since this would inter fere with proper seating.Instead, this model has a flat bottom and is provided with a handlewhich extends above the top. This handle is pivoted to pins at both endsof the box and carries a lock bar which extends down across the openfront of the box when the handle israised, thus preventing thecontainers from tipping forward.

The containers have thin walls and are open at the top. They may beformed of sheet metal or molded from plastic. The preferred form ofcontainer is provided with a handle and a label holder on the front andis of such size as to hold an ordinary spice can. In this form ofcontainer it is not necessary to provide a back, and the taileddescription is illustrated by the accompanyingdrawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a front view of one, form of my cabinet'mounte ed in a wall;

Fig. 2 is a vertical cross section through the cabinet of Fig. 1 showingit mounted on the outside of a wall. with one of its containers enclosedin the, cabinet and another tilted forward for access or withdrawal;

Fig. 3 is a side view of a modified form of container adapted to fit thecabinet of Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 4 is a front view of the container of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a front view of a portable form of my cabinet with two out ofseven containers removed; and

Fig. 6 is a vertical cross section taken along the line 6-6 of thecabinet of; Fig. 5.

The cabinet of Figs. 1 and 2 comprises an elongated box 10 having anopen front and an integrally formed from flange 11 that extends cleararound the opening; For mounting on theinside of the wall as shown inFig. l or on the outside of a wall as shown in Fig. 2,. a removabledecorative flange 13' is provided. This snapson to and covers theintegrally formed flange 11. When the cabinet is mounted on the outsideof a wall itis con-v venient to provide a shield 14 which meets-thedecorative flange at the front, but tapers to fit the box at the rear.This shield is slid into place from' the rear before they cabinet isinstalled on the outside of a wall by means of mounting screws 15passing through holes in the rear wall 12 of the box (see Fig. 2). 7

When the cabinet is installed in a wall the shield is omitted and thecabinet is fitted in a hole in the wall and secured at its ends tostuds16 by screws 17 see Fig. 1.).

As shown in Fig. 1, the cabinet contains nine spice containers 18,. Eachhas a handle 19 and .a label carrier .20 on its front. The containersfit side by side and comp te y fi th op ont of the. ca n A r u h m mrber 21 (best seen in Fig. 2) extendsalong the bottom of he- 2 x ne r hef on b 2 1 e nds of the tro x end throu the. e al of e box a d held through in. P ace- It .i ben om s eet m tal. or the like and has a frontwall 22, a trough section 23 of circular cross section and a roughlyhorizontal rear portion 24 upon which the containers rest when disposedentirely within the cabinet. Each container is provided with a rollermember 25 which fits in the trough. The rear of the trough is higherthan the front of the troughand overhangs the trough slightly, toprevent the containers from falling out when they are tipped forward, asshown i desired, the spice can and the container can both be removed bypulling upward on the handle.

The containers shown in Fig. l are made of sheet metal and the rollersthereon are formed integrally with the front of the container. In theform of container illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4 a roller 28 generallysimilar to the rollers 25 is provided, but this is' made integrally witha handle portion 29, the two being fastened to the front of thecontainer. As shown in Fig. 3, however, the roller projects a littleforward of the face of the container. This improves balance of the emptycontainer, so that it stays more firmly in place when it is in thecabinet in an empty condition. The label holder 30 in the form ofcontainer shown in Figs. 3 and 4 is made separately and fastened to thefront of the container, and the container itself is bent from a singlepiece of sheet metal.

The operation of the device illustrated by Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4 should beself-apparent. Spice boxes are placed in the respective container andthe containers are then tilted backward so that they close the front ofthe cabinet or box. Any one of the containers may be tilted forwardwithout disturbing the others and lifted out with its enclosed spicecan, or, the spice can may be pulled out by itself.

The form of my invention shown in Figs. 5 and 6 is portable. As in theprevious case, it comprises an open face box 40 which has a rear wall 41formed integrally with the top and sides. A trough member 42 extendslengthwise of the box near the bottom and toward the front and is formedintegrally with a lower front support section 43 that is fastened to theends of the box and also to the bottom. The trough section is a segmentof a circle, but has no overhanging rear portion as in the case of thetrough of Figs. 1 and 2. A plurality of generally rectangular containers44 have individual handles 45 and label holders 46 on their front facesand the containers fit in the box side by side to fill its open front.Each container has a roller 47 on itsbottom. This defines the arc of acircle and fits in the trough. It rolls in the trough when the spicecontainer is tilted forward. Since the trough of Figs. 5 and 6 has nooverhang at its rear, other stopping means are provided. This comprisesa stud 48 having an enlarged head 49 on the end of its shank. The studis fastened to the roller and slides back and forth in an arcuate slot50. The lower portion of the slit is wide'enough to accommodate thehead, but the rear portion is smaller so that when the container istilted forward the stud prevents the container from tilting forwardbeyond the slanting position shown in Fig. 6 While the head prevents thestud from being withdrawn. When the containers are tilted backward theirrears rest on rear edge 51 of the trough toward the rear of the box. Asin the former case, the containers of Figs. 5 and 6 are open at the rearand have cut way sides 52 to facilitate grasping the spice boxes.

The portable spice cabinet of Figs. 5 and 6 is provided with a handle 52which is journalled on pins 53, 54 at the ends of the box. 'The handlecarries a front extension or lock bar 55. When the handle is pushedtoward the rear the lock member is elevated permitting the containers tobe tilted forward. Whenthe handle is grasped so that the weight of thecabinet is suspended from it, it rotates forward and drops the lock bar55 into the position shown in Fig. 5, thus keeping the containers inplace when the cabinet is carried about by means of the handle.

The portable cabinet of Figs. 5 and 6 can, of course, be mounted on thewall, if desired, in the same manner as the other examples.

I claim:

1. In a container cabinet, the combination which comprises a box havingan open front, a trough extending along the bottom of the box, theinterior of the trough being of rounded concave cross section, and aplurality of containers adapted to fit side by side in the box above thetrough, each container having fixed on its bottom a convex roundedroller member that fits in the trough and supports the container thereinand permits the container to be tipped forward out of the open front ofthe box while the roller rotates through a restricted angle in thetrough, said trough and each roller member including cooperatingportions forming stopping means for retaining the rollers in the troughwhen the containers are tipped forward through the restricted angle.

2. In a container cabinet, the combination which comprises a box havingan open front, a trough extending its bottom a convex rounded rollermember that fits in the trough and supports the container therein andpermits the container to be tipped forward out of the open front of thebox while the roller rotates through a restricted angle in the trough,and stopping means for retaining the rollers in the trough when thecontainers are tipped forward through the restricted angle comprising anextension at the rear of the trough which rises above the front of thetrough and overhangs the rear of the trough.

3. In a container cabinet, the combination which comprises a box havingan open front, a trough extending along the bottom of the box, theinterior of the trough being rounded and of rounded concave uniformcross section, and a plurality of containers adapted to fit Side by sidein the box above the trough, each container having fixed on its bottom aconvex rounded roller member that fits in the trough and supports thecontainer therein and permits the container to be tipped forward out ofthe open front of the box while the roller rotates through a restrictedangle in the trough, said trough and each roller including cooperatingportions forming stopping means for retaining the rollers in the troughwhen the containers are tipped forward through the restricted angle, thecooperating means in the trough being a series of arcuate slots and thecooperating means on the rollers being studs fastened respectively tothe bottoms of the rollers and riding in the arcuate slots in thetrough.

4. In a container cabinet, the combination which comprises a box havingan open front, a trough extending along the bottom of the box, theinterior of the trough being rounded and of rounded concave uniformcross section, a plurality of containers adapted to fit side by side inthe box above the trough, each container having fixed on its bottom aconvex rounded roller member that fits in the trough and supports thecontainer therein and permits the container to be tipped forward out ofthe open front of the box while the roller rotates through a restrictedangle in the trough, said trough and each roller member includingcooperating portions forming stopping means for retaining the rollers inthe trough When the containers are tipped forward through the restrictedangle, and a flange extending around the front of the box.

5. In a container cabinet, the combination which comprises a box havingan open front, a trough extending along the bottom of the box, theinterior of the trough being rounded and of rounded concave crosssection, a plurality of containers adapted to fit side by side in thebox above the trough, each container having fixed on its bottom a convexrounded roller member that fits in the trough and supports the containertherein and permits the container to be tipped forward out of the openfront of the box while the roller rotates through a restricted angle inthe trough, said trough and each roller member including cooperatingportions forming stopping means for retaining the rollers in the troughwhen the containers are tipped forward through the restricted angle, ahandle extending along the top of the box and pivoted adjacent the twoends of the box, and a keeper extending along the top of the box nearthe front and fastened to the handle so that it drops over the front ofthe box and locks the containers in place when the handle is raised.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

